Winemaker Notes
Deep red ruby color. Intense nose of red berries (black currant, blue berry and cherries) and gingerbread. Spice and liquorice on the palate with elegant and well-ripened tannins, refined oak aromas and a smoky note on the finish. Impressive length. This wine can be aged for many years. Food pairing: any grilled meats.
Professional Ratings
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Wine Enthusiast
This is a big, bold wine, ripe with sweet tannins that balance the generous black currant fruitiness. The dense texture offers pleasant concentration, and the wine shows good aging potential.
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James Suckling
There’s plenty of dark-berry character, such as blueberries and blackberries with hints of bark. Medium to full body, firm and silky tannins and a soft and caressing finish. Better after 2022.
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Wine Spectator
This has the gamut of dark currant and blackberry compote flavors, with smoldering tobacco, tar and cedar notes and singed savory details. While dark and slightly rustic in profile, this has a good zip of fresh acidity through the finish. Shows solid range and character. Drink now through 2030.
One of the world’s most classic and popular styles of red wine, Bordeaux-inspired blends have spread from their homeland in France to nearly every corner of the New World. Typically based on either Cabernet Sauvignon or Merlot and supported by Cabernet Franc, Malbec and Petit Verdot, the best of these are densely hued, fragrant, full of fruit and boast a structure that begs for cellar time. Somm Secret—Blends from Bordeaux are generally earthier compared to those from the New World, which tend to be fruit-dominant.
Recognized for its superior reds as well as whites, Pessac-Léognan on the Left Bank claims classified growths for both—making it quite unique in comparison to its neighboring Médoc properties.
Pessac’s Chateau Haut-Brion, the only first growth located outside of the Médoc, is said to have been the first to conceptualize fine red wine in Bordeaux back in the late 1600s. The estate, along with its high-esteemed neighbors, La Mission Haut-Brion, Les Carmes Haut-Brion, Pique-Caillou and Chateau Pape-Clément are today all but enveloped by the city of Bordeaux. The rest of the vineyards of Pessac-Léognan are in clearings of heavily forested area or abutting dense suburbs.
Arid sand and gravel on top of clay and limestone make the area unique and conducive to growing Sémillon and Sauvignon blanc as well as the grapes in the usual Left Bank red recipe: Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot, Cabernet Franc and miniscule percentages of Petit Verdot and Malbec.
The best reds will show great force and finesse with inky blue and black fruit, mushroom, forest, tobacco, iodine and a smooth and intriguing texture.
Its best whites show complexity, longevity and no lack of exotic twists on citrus, tropical and stone fruit with pronounced floral and spice characteristics.